With a month of hockey in the books, the New York Rangers have been an improved team over last season. However, they do need to continue to develop some of their young talent. 

Coming into the year, the Rangers were a team that wanted to be noticeably better than last year. New York came in last place in the Eastern Conference. Due to the team having one of the worst records in the league overall, the lowest that they were going to be able to select in the 2026 NHL Draft was fifth. Unfortunately, they had some bad luck with the ping pong balls, and that is where they ultimately ended up. 

As expected, it was the top three forwards who went with the first three picks. This left the Rangers with some options for the blueline, and they ultimately landed on left-handed defenseman Alberts Smits. With some experience in the Olympics, Smits was seen as very ready to come in and play in the NHL. However, he is young and developing after his first month of action came to a close. 

Hannah Stuart of Bleacher Report recently graded some of the top rookies who are in the league already, and for Rangers’ Alberts Smits, he received a grade of a C+. 

Favorable Grade for Smits

With the fifth overall pick not registering a point yet through the first month of the season, the grade of a C+ is a favorable one for him.  Smits has been in the NHL right from the start of the season, and he was widely seen as one of the most NHL-ready prospects coming out of the draft. 

So far this season, it has been Smits on the third pair along with Braden Schneider. There has been a lot of discussion about Schneider’s future with the franchise, and he was seen as one of the more likely players to be dealt this summer. However, his market seemingly never got going, and he agreed to a one-year deal with New York to avoid arbitration. 

While his future with the team is uncertain, whether or not he is the best partner for Smits has also been discussed. Smits perhaps getting moved to a pairing with Sean Durzi could help with his development and take him to the next level. 

The young defenseman is playing the fewest minutes of any blueliner on the team, and getting him on the ice more has to be the plan soon. With a month of action in the books, it will be interesting to see what month two holds for Smits.